Shared middleware layer containers

ABSTRACT

Methods, computer program products, systems are provided. The method comprises receiving a request to install an application. A middle-share container corresponding to the application is then created and provisioned upon a shared middleware layer. Middleware components that the application needs are pre-installed and pre-configured in the shared middleware layer.

BACKGROUND

The present application relates to cloud computing, and morespecifically, to methods, systems and computer program products forprovisioning containers.

Cloud computing is shared pools of configurable computer systemresources and higher-level services that can be rapidly provisioned withminimal management effort, often over the Internet. Cloud computingrelies on sharing of resources to achieve coherence and economies ofscale, similar to a public utility. Third-party clouds enableorganizations to focus on their core business instead of expendingresources on computer infrastructure and maintenance. Cloud computingallows companies to avoid or minimize up-front IT infrastructure costs,in the meantime it allows enterprises to get their applications up andrunning faster, with improved manageability and less maintenance, andenables IT teams to more rapidly adjust resources to meet fluctuatingand unpredictable demand.

SUMMARY

This Summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in asimplified form that are further described herein in the DetailedDescription. This Summary is not intended to identify key factors oressential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended tobe used to limit the scope of the claimed subject matter.

In one illustrative embodiment of the present disclosure, there isprovided a computer implemented method. A request to install anapplication is received. A container corresponding to the application isthen determined and provisioned upon a shared middleware layer.Middleware components that the application needed are pre-installed andpre-configured in the shared middleware layer.

Computer program products and computer systems are also provided.

These and other features and advantages of the present disclosure willbe described in, or will become apparent to those of ordinary skill inthe art in view of, the following detailed description of the exampleembodiments of the present disclosure.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Through the more detailed description of some embodiments of the presentdisclosure in the accompanying drawings, the above and other objects,features and advantages of the present disclosure will become moreapparent, wherein the same reference generally refers to the samecomponents in the embodiments of the present disclosure:

FIG. 1 depicts a cloud computing node according to an embodiment of thepresent disclosure;

FIG. 2 depicts a cloud computing environment according to an embodimentof the present disclosure;

FIG. 3 depicts abstraction model layers according to an embodiment ofthe present disclosure;

FIG. 4 depicts a diagram of an overview structure of improved CaaS atruntime according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 5 depicts a diagram of a container of improved CaaS at runtimeaccording to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 6 depicts a flowchart of an example method according to anembodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 7 depicts different states in a lifecycle of a container accordingto an embodiment of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Some embodiments will be described in more detail with reference to theaccompanying drawings, in which the embodiments of the presentdisclosure have been illustrated. However, the present disclosure can beimplemented in various manners, and thus should not be construed to belimited to the embodiments disclosed herein.

Embodiments of the disclosure can be deployed on cloud computer systemswhich will be described in the following. It is to be understood thatalthough this disclosure includes a detailed description on cloudcomputing, implementation of the teachings recited herein are notlimited to a cloud computing environment. Rather, embodiments of thepresent disclosure are capable of being implemented in conjunction withany other type of computing environment now known or later developed.

Cloud computing is a model of service delivery for enabling convenient,on-demand network access to a shared pool of configurable computingresources (e.g. networks, network bandwidth, servers, processing,memory, storage, applications, virtual machines, and services) that canbe rapidly provisioned and released with minimal management effort orinteraction with a provider of the service. This cloud model may includeat least five characteristics, at least three service models, and atleast four deployment models.

Characteristics are as follows:

On-demand self-service: a cloud consumer can unilaterally provisioncomputing capabilities, such as server time and network storage, asneeded automatically without requiring human interaction with theservice's provider.

Broad network access: capabilities are available over a network andaccessed through standard mechanisms that promote use by heterogeneousthin or thick client platforms (e.g., mobile phones, laptops, and PDAs).

Resource pooling: the provider's computing resources are pooled to servemultiple consumers using a multi-tenant model, with different physicaland virtual resources dynamically assigned and reassigned according todemand. There is a sense of location independence in that the consumergenerally has no control or knowledge over the exact location of theprovided resources but may be able to specify location at a higher levelof abstraction (e.g., country, state, or datacenter).

Rapid elasticity: capabilities can be rapidly and elasticallyprovisioned, in some cases automatically, to quickly scale out andrapidly released to quickly scale in. To the consumer, the capabilitiesavailable for provisioning often appear to be unlimited and can bepurchased in any quantity at any time.

Measured service: cloud systems automatically control and optimizeresource use by leveraging a metering capability at some level ofabstraction appropriate to the type of service (e.g., storage,processing, bandwidth, and active user accounts). Resource usage can bemonitored, controlled, and reported providing transparency for both theprovider and consumer of the utilized service.

Service Models are as follows:

Software as a Service (SaaS): the capability provided to the consumer isto use the provider's applications running on a cloud infrastructure.The applications are accessible from various client devices through athin client interface such as a web browser (e.g., web-based e-mail).The consumer does not manage or control the underlying cloudinfrastructure including network, servers, operating systems, storage,or even individual application capabilities, with the possible exceptionof limited user-specific application configuration settings.

Platform as a Service (PaaS): the capability provided to the consumer isto deploy onto the cloud infrastructure consumer-created or acquiredapplications created using programming languages and tools supported bythe provider. The consumer does not manage or control the underlyingcloud infrastructure including networks, servers, operating systems, orstorage, but has control over the deployed applications and possiblyapplication hosting environment configurations.

Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS): the capability provided to theconsumer is to provision processing, storage, networks, and otherfundamental computing resources where the consumer is able to deploy andrun arbitrary software, which can include operating systems andapplications. The consumer does not manage or control the underlyingcloud infrastructure but has control over operating systems, storage,deployed applications, and possibly limited control of select networkingcomponents (e.g., host firewalls).

Deployment Models are as follows:

Private cloud: the cloud infrastructure is operated solely for anorganization. It may be managed by the organization or a third party andmay exist on-premises or off-premises.

Community cloud: the cloud infrastructure is shared by severalorganizations and supports a specific community that has shared concerns(e.g., mission, security requirements, policy, and complianceconsiderations). It may be managed by the organizations or a third partyand may exist on-premises or off-premises.

Public cloud: the cloud infrastructure is made available to the generalpublic or a large industry group and is owned by an organization sellingcloud services.

Hybrid cloud: the cloud infrastructure is a composition of two or moreclouds (private, community, or public) that remain unique entities butare bound together by standardized or proprietary technology thatenables data and application portability (e.g., cloud bursting forload-balancing between clouds).

A cloud computing environment is service oriented with a focus onstatelessness, low coupling, modularity, and semantic interoperability.At the heart of cloud computing is an infrastructure that includes anetwork of interconnected nodes.

Referring now to FIG. 1, a schematic of an example of a cloud computingnode is shown (e.g., cloud computing node 10 of FIG. 2). Cloud computingnode 10 is only one example of a suitable cloud computing node and isnot intended to suggest any limitation as to the scope of use orfunctionality of embodiments of the disclosure described herein.Regardless, cloud computing node 10 is capable of being implementedand/or performing any of the functionality set forth hereinabove.

In cloud computing node 10 there is a computer system/server 12 or aportable electronic device such as a communication device, which isoperational with numerous other general purpose or special purposecomputing system environments or configurations. Examples of well-knowncomputing systems, environments, and/or configurations that may besuitable for use with computer system/server 12 include, but are notlimited to, personal computer systems, server computer systems, thinclients, thick clients, hand-held or laptop devices, multiprocessorsystems, microprocessor-based systems, set top boxes, programmableconsumer electronics, network PCs, minicomputer systems, mainframecomputer systems, and distributed cloud computing environments thatinclude any of the above systems or devices, and the like.

Computer system/server 12 may be described in the general context ofcomputer system-executable instructions, such as program modules, beingexecuted by a computer system. Generally, program modules may includeroutines, programs, objects, components, logic, data structures, and soon that perform particular tasks or implement particular abstract datatypes. Computer system/server 12 may be practiced in distributed cloudcomputing environments where tasks are performed by remote processingdevices that are linked through a communications network. In adistributed cloud computing environment, program modules may be locatedin both local and remote computer system storage media including memorystorage devices.

As shown in FIG. 1, computer system/server 12 in cloud computing node 10is shown in. The components of computer system/server 12 may include,but are not limited to, one or more processors or processing units 16, asystem memory 28, and a bus 18 that communicatively couples varioussystem components, including system memory 28 to processing unit 16.

Bus 18 represents one or more of any of several types of bus structures,including a memory bus or memory controller, a peripheral bus, anaccelerated graphics port, and a processor or local bus using any of avariety of bus architectures. By way of example, and not limitation,such architectures include Industry Standard Architecture (ISA) bus,Micro Channel Architecture (MCA) bus, Enhanced ISA (EISA) bus, VideoElectronics Standards Association (VESA) local bus, and PeripheralComponent Interconnect (PCI) bus.

Computer system/server 12 typically includes a variety of computersystem readable media. Such media may be any available media that isaccessible by computer system/server 12, and it includes both volatileand non-volatile media, removable and non-removable media.

System memory 28 can include computer system readable media in the formof volatile memory, such as random access memory (RAM) 30 and/or cachememory 32. Computer system/server 12 may further include otherremovable/non-removable, volatile/non-volatile computer system storagemedia. By way of example only, storage system 34 can be provided forreading from and writing to a non-removable, non-volatile magnetic media(not shown and typically called a “hard drive”). Although not shown, amagnetic disk drive for reading from and writing to a removable,non-volatile magnetic disk (e.g., a “floppy disk”), and an optical diskdrive for reading from or writing to a removable, non-volatile opticaldisk such as a CD-ROM, DVD-ROM or other optical media can be provided.In such instances, each can be connected to bus 18 by one or more datamedia interfaces. As will be further depicted and described below,memory 28 may include at least one program product having a set (e.g.,at least one) of program modules that are configured to carry out thefunctions of embodiments of the disclosure.

Program/utility 40, having a set (at least one) of program modules 42,may be stored in memory 28 by way of example, and not limitation, aswell as an operating system, one or more application programs, otherprogram modules, and program data. Each of the operating system, one ormore application programs, other program modules, and program data orsome combination thereof, may include an implementation of a networkingenvironment. Program modules 42 generally carry out the functions and/ormethodologies of embodiments of the disclosure as described herein.

Computer system/server 12 may also communicate with one or more externaldevices 14 such as a keyboard, a pointing device, a display 24, etc.;one or more devices that enable a user to interact with computersystem/server 12; and/or any devices (e.g., network card, modem, etc.)that enable computer system/server 12 to communicate with one or moreother computing devices. Such communication can occur via Input/Output(I/O) interfaces 22. Still yet, computer system/server 12 cancommunicate with one or more networks such as a local area network(LAN), a general wide area network (WAN), and/or a public network (e.g.,the Internet) via network adapter 20. As depicted, network adapter 20communicates with the other components of computer system/server 12 viabus 18. It should be understood that although not shown, other hardwareand/or software components could be used in conjunction with computersystem/server 12. Examples, include, but are not limited to: microcode,device drivers, redundant processing units, external disk drive arrays,RAID systems, tape drives, and data archival storage systems, etc.

Referring now to FIG. 2, illustrative cloud computing environment 50 isdepicted. As shown, cloud computing environment 50 includes one or morecloud computing nodes 10 with which local computing devices used bycloud consumers, such as, for example, personal digital assistant (PDA)or cellular telephone 54A, desktop computer 54B, laptop computer 54C,and/or automobile computer system 54N may communicate. Nodes 10 maycommunicate with one another. They may be grouped (not shown) physicallyor virtually, in one or more networks, such as Private, Community,Public, or Hybrid clouds as described hereinabove, or a combinationthereof. This allows cloud computing environment 50 to offerinfrastructure, platforms and/or software as services for which a cloudconsumer does not need to maintain resources on a local computingdevice. It is understood that the types of computing devices 54A-N shownin FIG. 2 are intended to be illustrative only and that computing nodes10 and cloud computing environment 50 can communicate with any type ofcomputerized device over any type of network and/or network addressableconnection (e.g., using a web browser).

Referring now to FIG. 3, a set of functional abstraction layers providedby cloud computing environment 50 (FIG. 2) is shown. It should beunderstood in advance that the components, layers, and functions shownin FIG. 3 are intended to be illustrative only and embodiments of thedisclosure are not limited thereto. As depicted, the following layersand corresponding functions are provided:

Hardware and software layer 60 includes hardware and softwarecomponents. Examples of hardware components include: mainframes 61; RISC(Reduced Instruction Set Computer) architecture based servers 62;servers 63; blade servers 64; storage devices 65; and networks andnetworking components 66. In some embodiments, software componentsinclude network application server software 67 and database software 68.

Virtualization layer 70 provides an abstraction layer from which thefollowing examples of virtual entities may be provided: virtual servers71; virtual storage 72; virtual networks 73, including virtual privatenetworks; virtual applications and operating systems 74; and virtualclients 75.

In one example, management layer 80 may provide the functions describedbelow. Resource provisioning 81 provides dynamic procurement ofcomputing resources and other resources that are utilized to performtasks within the cloud computing environment. Metering and Pricing 82provide cost tracking as resources are utilized within the cloudcomputing environment, and billing or invoicing for consumption of theseresources. In one example, these resources may include applicationsoftware licenses. Security provides identity verification for cloudconsumers and tasks, as well as protection for data and other resources.User portal 83 provides access to the cloud computing environment forconsumers and system administrators. Service level management 84provides cloud computing resource allocation and management such thatrequired service levels are met. Service Level Agreement (SLA) planningand fulfillment 85 provide pre-arrangement for, and procurement of,cloud computing resources for which a future requirement is anticipatedin accordance with an SLA.

Workloads layer 90 provides examples of functionality for which thecloud computing environment may be utilized. Examples of workloads andfunctions which may be provided from this layer include: mapping andnavigation 91; software development and lifecycle management 92; virtualclassroom education delivery 93; data analytics processing 94;transaction processing 95; and container provisioning 96, according toembodiments of the disclosure.

Aside from the service models discussed above, Container as a Service(CaaS) is another trending cloud service model developed with thecontainerization technology in which a kernel of an operating systemallows the existence of multiple isolated user-space instances. Suchinstances, called containers, may look like real computers from thepoint of view of applications running inside them. A computerapplication running on an ordinary operating system can see allresources of that computer, such as connected devices, files andfolders, network shares, CPU power, quantifiable hardware capabilities,and the like. However, applications running inside a container can onlysee the container's contents and devices assigned to the container. Acontainer is dependent on the operating system it runs on. CaaS allowsusers to manage and deploy containers, applications and clusters throughcontainer-based virtualization. CaaS is often considered to be a subsetof IaaS including containers as its fundamental resource, as opposed tobare metal systems and virtual machines (VMs). Key differentiators ofcontainers compared to VMs are packaging, portability, created as fitfor purpose and therefore lower footprint and startup times,repeatability, better resource utilization of servers, and betterintegration into the whole development ecosystem, such as ContinuousIntegration/Delivery lifecycle. Containers with an application runninginside it can be built, shipped, and run anywhere: on a laptop, on testsystems, in pre-production, and in production systems and the like. Thisis all without changes to any content of the container and theapplication inside.

While CaaS provides a new flexible type of cloud service model, currentcontainer-based application deployment mode, such as pre-installeddocker images, does not focus on the binding between middleware andapplications. From user perspective, the binding process betweenmiddleware and application is quite complicated and time-consuming, asit typically needs customized installation and configuration process.Also, a specific application typically needs its proprietary middlewareand customized installation and configuration due to the poorreusability of existing middleware images or instances, which furtherresults in a waste of resources. Further, upgrade, backup, capacityexpansion, live migration or hot reloading of the application duringproduction phase may further require a lot of efforts due to thecomplexity of its installation and configuration of its middleware.

Embodiments of the present disclosure provide improved CaaS with betterflexibility and efficiency for existing CaaS by introducing containersthat utilize a shared middleware layer (hereinafter referred to as“middle-share containers”), so that multiple containers may share thesame middleware layer. According to embodiments of the presentdisclosure, a middle-share container is bundled with an applicationwhich includes its core application files and its configurations,encapsulated into the container. A middle-share container may run on ashared middleware layer in which middleware components the applicationneeded are pre-installed and pre-configured, e.g., by the serviceprovider. In such way, a middle-share container may be provided as aservice instance which functions as the application. From userperspective, users of middle-share containers do not need to have theknowledge of the complicated processes of customized installation orconfiguration to bind the middleware components and the application,merely need to install and configure the application itself. A pluralityof middle-share containers running on the same shared middleware layeris dependent upon the same or similar the middleware componentspre-installed and pre-configured in the shared middleware layer and areisolated from each other.

Referring now to FIG. 4, which depicts a diagram of an overviewstructure 400 of improved CaaS at runtime according to an embodiment ofthe present disclosure. As shown in FIG. 4, the improved CaaS is alayered structure 400. An operating system (OS) layer 402 is at thebottom of the layered structure with host OS running in it. The host OSrunning in the OS layer 402 may be any types of modern operating systemsthat support containerization technologies existing now or developed inthe future, and typically only comprises core functionalities of thehost OS, referred as “kernel,” with complete control over everything inthe system. An example of the host OS may be Unix-based OS (e.g., BSD,IBM® AIX®, Sun Microsystems® Solaris®, etc.), Linux-based OS (e.g.,CentOS, Debian, Fedora, OpenSUSE, Ubuntu, etc.), Microsoft® Windows®based OS, or any other types of suitable OS. According to an embodimentof the present disclosure, the host OS may further comprise additionalfunctionalities dependent upon other requirements of the system, e.g.,security module where security is a major concern.

Above the OS layer 402 is a shared middleware layer 404 in whichmiddleware components are pre-installed and pre-configured. Asaforementioned, the plurality of middle-share containers 408-1, 408-2, .. . , 408-n run upon the same shared middleware layer 404, therefore,the middleware components pre-installed and pre-configured in the sharedmiddleware layer 404 are shared by the plurality of middle-sharecontainers 408-1, 408-2, . . . , 408-n and hence support respectiveapplications 410-1, 410-2, . . . , 410-n running inside the plurality ofmiddle-share containers 408-1, 408-2, . . . , 408-n. That is to say, theapplications 410-1, 410-2, . . . , 410-n depend upon the same or similarmiddleware components that are pre-installed and pre-configured in theshared middleware layer 404 which provide a link between host OS runningin the OS layer 402 and the plurality of middle-share containers 408-1,408-2, . . . , 408-n. The shared middleware layer 404 supports theapplications 410-1, 410-2, . . . , 410-n running inside their respectivemiddle-share containers 408-1, 408-2, . . . , 408-n.

A container manager 406 is responsible for the lifecycle management ofthe plurality of middle-share containers 408-1, 408-2, . . . , 408-n atruntime runs above the shared middleware layer 404. In its lifecycle, amiddle-share container undergoes various states like installed, running,paused, stopped, or uninstalled, similar to existing technologies. Thelifecycle management will be discussed in detail later with reference toFIG. 7. A middle-share container may be provided by the containermanager 406 as a service instance bound to the middleware componentspre-installed and pre-configured in the shared middleware layer 404,providing functionalities of the application with which the middle-sharecontainer is bundled. According to an embodiment of the disclosure, themiddle-share container may be stored as an image before itsprovisioning. The provisioned middle-share container may be encapsulatedwith the application it is bundled with, and may include coreapplication files and configurations, as discussed herein. Theconfiguration of the application may be received from users of theapplication, or from a configuration file.

A plurality of middle-share containers 408-1, 408-2, . . . , 408-n runsupon the shared middleware layer 404 and are managed by the containermanager 406 at runtime, while corresponding applications 410-1, 410-2, .. . , or 410-n run inside each of the plurality of middle-sharecontainers, as shown in FIG. 4. From a user's perspective, eachmiddle-share container merely needs to install and configure thecorresponding application itself, as the middleware components bound tothe application have been pre-installed and pre-configured in the sharedmiddleware layer 404. There is no need for users to install andconfigure middleware upon which the application is dependent.

The structure of the improved CaaS provides users of an application witha simplified process to install the application. Users of theapplication do not need to install or configure middleware upon whichthe application is dependent, as it has been pre-installed andpre-configured in the shared middleware layer. Therefore, the improvedCaaS provides an even more flexible model of CaaS, compared to existingCaaS.

Now referring to FIG. 5, which depicts a diagram 500 of a middle-sharecontainer in an improved CaaS at runtime, according to an embodiment ofthe present disclosure. An OS layer 502, a shared middleware layer 504,and a container manager 506 in FIG. 5 are similar to the OS layer 402,the shared middleware layer 404 and the container manager 406 in FIG. 4;however, middle-share container 508 is shown in greater detail. Themiddle-share container 508 is managed by the container manager 506, asdiscussed above with reference to FIG. 4. The container manager 506 isresponsible for the lifecycle management of the middle-share container508, inside which an application with its core files 511 and itsconfigurations 512 runs. The middleware components that the applicationrunning inside the middle-share container 508 needs are pre-installedand pre-configured in the middleware layer 504, similar to what wasdiscussed with reference to FIG. 4. The middle-share container 508 isprovided as a service instance to users of the middle-share container508. As the middleware components needed by the application have beenpre-installed and pre-configured in the shared middleware layer 504, theusers of the middle-share container 508 only need to install andconfigure the application itself without the need to worry about theinstallation and configuration of the middleware components.

Referring now to FIG. 6, which depicts a flowchart of an exemplarymethod 600, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Themethod 600 may be implemented e.g., by the container manager 406, 506and starts at step S602. Then it flows into step S604 in which a requestto install an application is received. In embodiments, the request maybe received from a user. A middle-share container corresponding to theapplication is created in step S606. A middle-share container, accordingto embodiments of the present disclosure, is bundled with theapplication and includes its core application files and configurations,and is encapsulated into the middle-share container. The middle-sharecontainer may be stored in an image file before provisioning, in whichcase an image corresponding to the application may also be created instep S606. Then, method 600 enters step S608, in which the middle-sharecontainer is provisioned upon a shared middleware layer where themiddleware components needed by the application are pre-installed andpre-configured. According to an embodiment of the present disclosure,the provisioning of the middle-share container comprises installing theapplication with the configurations and binding the application tomiddleware components that are pre-installed and pre-configured in theshared middleware layer. Alternatively, the middle-share container maybe bound to the middleware components that are pre-installed andpre-configured in the shared middleware layer in step S610. Themiddle-share container is then started and provided as a serviceinstance bound to the middleware components.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the middlewarecomponents that re pre-installed and pre-configured in the sharedmiddleware layer may be shared with other middle-share containers. Themiddle-share containers, however, are isolated from each other.

Referring now to FIG. 7, depicted is a diagram 700 of the differentstates in a lifecycle of a middle-share container, according to anembodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG. 7, there are fivedifferent states in a lifecycle of a container which are:

INSTALLED 701: the middle-share container has been created and installedwith the application, e.g., the application has been installed,configured inside the middle-share container, and bound to themiddleware components pre-installed and pre-configured in the sharedmiddleware layer. The middle-share container is ready to start.

RUNNING 702: the middle-share container is running and functioning asthe application, providing functionalities of the application.

PAUSED 703: the middle-share container is paused, and it stops providingfunctionalities of the application temporarily, pending for furtherinstructions.

STOPPED 704: the middle-share container is stopped, and it stopsproviding functionalities of the application.

UNINSTALLED 705: the middle-share container has been uninstalled withthe application, e.g., the middle-share container is terminated.

As mentioned herein, the container manager 406, 506 is responsible forlifecycle management of middle-share containers. Upon receiving arequest to install an application, (e.g., at step S604 of FIG. 6), thecontainer manager 406, 506 creates (e.g., at step S606 of FIG. 6) amiddle-share container corresponding to the application. The createdmiddle-share container is bundled with both core files andconfigurations of the application. The configurations of the applicationmay be received from users of the application, or from a configurationfile. The container manager 406, 506 then provisions (e.g., at step S608of FIG. 6) the created middle-share container upon the shared middlewarelayer 404, 504, where middleware components the application requires arepre-installed and pre-configured. The provisioning of the middle-sharecontainer comprises installing the application with the configurationsand binding the application to the middleware components pre-installedand pre-configured in the shared middleware layer (e.g., at step S610 ofFIG. 6). After the installation, configuration and binding process, themiddle-share container enters INSTALLED 701 state.

The container manager 406, 506 then initiates a ‘start’ instruction tostart the middle-share container after receiving an instruction fromusers of the application to start the application. The middle-sharecontainer starts and enters RUNNING 702 state with the execution of the‘start’ instruction, as the application has been installed, configured,and bound to the middleware components pre-installed and pre-configuredin the shared middleware layer. The middle-share container in RUNNING702 state functions as the application provides functionalities of theapplication running inside it. Users of the application may utilize themiddle-share container via the application and access thefunctionalities of the application. If a ‘pause’ instruction is receivedfrom the container manager 406, 506 to suspend the middle-sharecontainer, the middle-share container enters PAUSED 703 state pendingfor further instructions, in which it stops providing functionalities ofthe application, temporarily. A ‘resume’ instruction may follow and themiddle-share container then re-enters RUNNING 702 state.

If a ‘stop’ instruction is received from the container manager 406, 506,the middle-share container enters STOPPED 704 state in which it stopsproviding functionalities of the application. A ‘stop’ instruction maybe triggered when the middle-share container terminates due to certainproblems, e.g., an Out-of-Memory error. If a ‘restart’ instruction isreceived from the container manager 406, 506, the middle-share containerrestarts and re-enters RUNNING 702 state. A ‘restart’ instruction may betriggered after the middle-share container terminates due to certainproblems it encounters, e.g., an Out-of-Memory error.

If users of the application decide to stop using the application, thecontainer manager 406, 506 may initiate an ‘uninstall’ instruction afterreceiving an instruction to uninstall the application. Then themiddle-share container enters UNINSTALLED 705 state where themiddle-share container bundled to the application is terminated.

In the above, embodiments of the present disclosure are discussed withreferences to figures. As the middleware components shared by aplurality of middle-share containers are pre-installed and configured,users do not need to go through the complicated processes ofinstallation and configuration of middleware. In the meantime, asmiddle-share containers are provided as service instances with themiddleware components pre-installed and pre-configured, upgrade, backup,capacity expansion, live migration, or hot reloading becomes mucheasier, as again, users do not need to go through the complicatedprocesses of installation and configuration of middleware. CaaS providermay initiate upgrades and/or capacity expansions from the provider sideactively or upon the request of users, while users may initiate backup,live migration, and hot reloading from the middle-share container level,without considering the complicated processes of installation andconfiguration of middleware.

It should be noted that the method according to embodiments of thisdisclosure could be implemented by computer system/server 12 of FIG. 1.

The present disclosure may be a system, a method, and/or a computerprogram product at any possible technical detail level of integration.The computer program product may include a computer readable storagemedium (or media) having computer readable program instructions thereonfor causing a processor to carry out aspects of the present disclosure.

The computer readable storage medium can be a tangible device that canretain and store instructions for use by an instruction executiondevice. The computer readable storage medium may be, for example, but isnot limited to, an electronic storage device, a magnetic storage device,an optical storage device, an electromagnetic storage device, asemiconductor storage device, or any suitable combination of theforegoing. A non-exhaustive list of more specific examples of thecomputer readable storage medium includes the following: a portablecomputer diskette, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), aread-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROMor Flash memory), a static random access memory (SRAM), a portablecompact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), a digital versatile disk (DVD),a memory stick, a floppy disk, a mechanically encoded device such aspunch-cards or raised structures in a groove having instructionsrecorded thereon, and any suitable combination of the foregoing. Acomputer readable storage medium, as used herein, is not to be construedas being transitory signals per se, such as radio waves or other freelypropagating electromagnetic waves, electromagnetic waves propagatingthrough a waveguide or other transmission media (e.g., light pulsespassing through a fiber-optic cable), or electrical signals transmittedthrough a wire.

Computer readable program instructions described herein can bedownloaded to respective computing/processing devices from a computerreadable storage medium or to an external computer or external storagedevice via a network, for example, the Internet, a local area network, awide area network and/or a wireless network. The network may comprisecopper transmission cables, optical transmission fibers, wirelesstransmission, routers, firewalls, switches, gateway computers and/oredge servers. A network adapter card or network interface in eachcomputing/processing device receives computer readable programinstructions from the network and forwards the computer readable programinstructions for storage in a computer readable storage medium withinthe respective computing/processing device.

Computer readable program instructions for carrying out operations ofthe present disclosure may be assembler instructions,instruction-set-architecture (ISA) instructions, machine instructions,machine dependent instructions, microcode, firmware instructions,state-setting data, configuration data for integrated circuitry, oreither source code or object code written in any combination of one ormore programming languages, including an object oriented programminglanguage such as Smalltalk, C++, or the like, and procedural programminglanguages, such as the “C” programming language or similar programminglanguages. The computer readable program instructions may executeentirely on the user's computer, partly on the user's computer, as astand-alone software package, partly on the user's computer and partlyon a remote computer or entirely on the remote computer or server. Inthe latter scenario, the remote computer may be connected to the user'scomputer through any type of network, including a local area network(LAN) or a wide area network (WAN), or the connection may be made to anexternal computer (for example, through the Internet using an InternetService Provider). In some embodiments, electronic circuitry including,for example, programmable logic circuitry, field-programmable gatearrays (FPGA), or programmable logic arrays (PLA) may execute thecomputer readable program instructions by utilizing state information ofthe computer readable program instructions to personalize the electroniccircuitry, in order to perform aspects of the present disclosure.

Aspects of the present disclosure are described herein with reference toflowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams of methods, apparatus(systems), and computer program products according to embodiments of thedisclosure. It will be understood that each block of the flowchartillustrations and/or block diagrams, and combinations of blocks in theflowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams, can be implemented bycomputer readable program instructions.

These computer readable program instructions may be provided to aprocessor of a general purpose computer, special purpose computer, orother programmable data processing apparatus to produce a machine, suchthat the instructions, which execute via the processor of the computeror other programmable data processing apparatus, create means forimplementing the functions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or blockdiagram block or blocks. These computer readable program instructionsmay also be stored in a computer readable storage medium that can directa computer, a programmable data processing apparatus, and/or otherdevices to function in a particular manner, such that the computerreadable storage medium having instructions stored therein comprises anarticle of manufacture including instructions which implement aspects ofthe function/act specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram blockor blocks.

The computer readable program instructions may also be loaded onto acomputer, other programmable data processing apparatus, or other deviceto cause a series of operational steps to be performed on the computer,other programmable apparatus or other device to produce a computerimplemented process, such that the instructions which execute on thecomputer, other programmable apparatus, or other device implement thefunctions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block orblocks.

The flowchart and block diagrams in the Figures illustrate thearchitecture, functionality, and operation of possible implementationsof systems, methods, and computer program products according to variousembodiments of the present disclosure. In this regard, each block in theflowchart or block diagrams may represent a module, segment, or portionof instructions, which comprises one or more executable instructions forimplementing the specified logical function(s). In some alternativeimplementations, the functions noted in the blocks may occur out of theorder noted in the Figures. For example, two blocks shown in successionmay, in fact, be executed substantially concurrently, or the blocks maysometimes be executed in the reverse order, depending upon thefunctionality involved. It will also be noted that each block of theblock diagrams and/or flowchart illustration, and combinations of blocksin the block diagrams and/or flowchart illustration, can be implementedby special purpose hardware-based systems that perform the specifiedfunctions or acts or carry out combinations of special purpose hardwareand computer instructions.

The descriptions of the various embodiments of the present disclosurehave been presented for purposes of illustration, but are not intendedto be exhaustive or limited to the embodiments disclosed. Manymodifications and variations will be apparent to those of ordinary skillin the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the describedembodiments. The terminology used herein was chosen to best explain theprinciples of the embodiments, the practical application or technicalimprovement over technologies found in the marketplace, or to enableothers of ordinary skill in the art to understand the embodimentsdisclosed herein.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method, comprising: receiving a request toinstall an application within a container as a service environment;generating an image of a middle-share container with the applicationinstalled thereon; creating, using the image, the middle-share containercorresponding to the application; receiving, from a user, aconfiguration for the application; provisioning the middle-sharecontainer upon a shared middleware layer within the container as aservice environment, the middleware layer providing a link between themiddle-share container and an operating system, wherein a set ofmiddleware components required by the application is pre-installed andpre-configured, according to the received configuration, by a serviceprovider in the shared middleware layer; wherein the middle-sharecontainer is portable to a second container as a service environment;wherein the middle-share container is a first middle-share container ofa plurality of middle-share containers on the shared middleware layer;wherein the plurality of middle-share containers is running instances ofthe application using the operating system; and wherein the set ofmiddleware components are employed to concurrently support the pluralityof middle-share containers running the application.
 2. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the middle-share container is bundled with theapplication, the bundle including core application files andconfigurations for the application.
 3. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising binding the middle-share container and the set of middlewarecomponents.
 4. The method of claim 3, further comprising starting themiddle-share container, in response to the provisioning of themiddle-share container, and wherein the request to install anapplication is received in response to an identified need for anupgrade, a backup, a capacity expansion, a live migration, or a hotreloading.
 5. The method of claim 1, wherein the provisionedmiddle-share container is provided as a service instance bound to theset of middleware components.
 6. The method of claim 1, wherein the setof middleware components are shared with at least one other middle-sharecontainer, wherein the middle-share container and the at least one othercontainer are isolated from each other.
 7. The method of claim 1,further comprising managing a lifecycle of the middle-share container,wherein a set of lifecycles of a plurality of containers, including themiddle-share container, is managed concurrently by a container manager.8. The method of claim 1, wherein software is provided as a service in acloud environment to perform the method.
 9. A computer program product,the computer program product comprising a computer readable storagehaving program instructions embodied therewith, the program instructionsexecutable by a computer, to cause the computer to: receive a request toinstall an application within a container as a service environment;generate an image of a middle-share container with the applicationinstalled thereon; create, using the image, the middle-share containercorresponding to the application; receive, from a user, a configurationfor the application; provision the middle-share container upon a sharedmiddleware layer within the container as a service environment, themiddleware layer providing a link between the middle-share container andan operating system, wherein a set of middleware components required bythe application is pre-installed and pre-configured, according to thereceived configuration, by a service provider in the shared middlewarelayer; wherein the middle-share container is portable to a secondcontainer as a service environment; wherein the middle-share containeris a first middle-share container of a plurality of middle-sharecontainers on the shared middleware layer; wherein the plurality ofmiddle-share containers is running instances of the application usingthe operating system; and wherein the set of middleware components areemployed to concurrently support the plurality of middle-sharecontainers running the application.
 10. The computer program product ofclaim 9, wherein the middle-share container is bundled with theapplication, the bundle including core application files andconfigurations for the application.
 11. The computer program product ofclaim 9, wherein the program instructions further cause the computer tobind the middle-share container and the set of middleware components.12. The computer program product of claim 11, wherein the programinstructions further cause the computer to start the middle-sharecontainer, in response to the provisioning of the middle-sharecontainer, and wherein the request to install an application is receivedin response to an identified need for an upgrade, a backup, a capacityexpansion, a live migration, or a hot reloading.
 13. The computerprogram product of claim 9, wherein the provisioned middle-sharecontainer is provided as a service instance bound to the set ofmiddleware components.
 14. The computer program product of claim 9,wherein the set of middleware components are shared with at least oneother middle-share container, wherein the middle-share container and theat least one other container are isolated from each other.
 15. A system,the system comprising: a processor; memory accessible by the processor;and computer program instructions stored in the memory and executable bythe processor to cause the system to: receive a request to install anapplication within a container as a service environment; generate animage of a middle-share container with the application installedthereon; create, using the image, the middle-share containercorresponding to the application; receive, from a user, a configurationfor the application; provision the middle-share container upon a sharedmiddleware layer within the container as a service environment, themiddleware layer providing a link between the middle-share container andan operating system, wherein a set of middleware components required bythe application is pre-installed and pre-configured, according to thereceived configuration, by a service provider in the shared middlewarelayer; wherein the middle-share container is portable to a secondcontainer as a service environment; wherein the middle-share containeris a first middle-share container of a plurality of middle-sharecontainers on the shared middleware layer; wherein the plurality ofmiddle-share containers is running instances of the application usingthe operating system; and wherein the set of middleware components areemployed to concurrently support the plurality of middle-sharecontainers running the application.
 16. The system of claim 15, whereinthe middle-share container is bundled with the application, the bundleincluding core application files and configurations for the application.17. The system of claim 15, wherein the program instructions furthercause the system to bind the middle-share container and the set ofmiddleware components.
 18. The system of claim 17, wherein the programinstructions further cause the system to start the middle-sharecontainer, in response to the provisioning of the middle-sharecontainer, and wherein the request to install an application is receivedin response to an identified need for an upgrade, a backup, a capacityexpansion, a live migration, or a hot reloading.
 19. The system of claim15, wherein the provisioned middle-share container is provided as aservice instance bound to the set of middleware components.
 20. Thesystem of claim 15, wherein the set of middleware components are sharedwith at least one other middle-share container, wherein the middle-sharecontainer and the at least one other container are isolated from eachother.